￼￼‘The Germans are wonderfully thorough,‘ Johns said. 'They did that in their own country. Card-indexed all the so-called leaders, Socialites, diplomats, politicians, labour leaders, priests — and then presented the ultimatum. Everything forgiven and forgotten, or the Public Prosecutor. It wouldn't surprise me if they’d done the same thing over here. They formed, you know, a kind of Ministry of Fear - with the most efficient under-secretaries. It isn‘t only that they get hold on certain people. It’s the general atmosphere they spread, so that you can’t depend on a soul.‘

Kirja on kuvaus pelosta ja rakkaudesta, rakkaudesta ja pelosta, ja oikeastaan tässä onkin teoksen varsinainen pelon ministeriö, siinä miten rakkaus saa ihmisen pelkäämään, eikä tästä pelosta eroon pääse niin kauan kuin on elossa. Näin Greene kuvaa Rowen rakkautta: "Her face looked ugly in the attempt to avoid tears; it was an ugliness which bound him to her more than any beauty could have done; it isn't being happy together, he thought as though it were a fresh discovery, that makes one love – it's being unhappy together."